Gettysburg College said 27 students violated campus policy

The internal investigation was conducted in response to a Montgomery County drug ring investigation

More than 25 students were found to have violated Gettysburg College's drug policy, resulting in expulsions, suspensions and dismissals from campus, according to a letter from college president Janet Morgan Riggs.

In an email sent July 14 to parents and alumni, Riggs stated the 27 sanctions were given in response to the college's internal investigation, which involved the questioning of 39 students. The investigation was in response to a Philadelphia-area drug ring investigation earlier this year.

Phi Sigma Kappa will also no longer be recognized by the campus for at least five years based on the school's findings and recent disciplinary action against the fraternity, the letter states. Any organized activity during the deactivation period could extend the fraternities suspension.

“It is clear that we are not immune to the problems associated with drug and alcohol abuse among our nation's young people,” Riggs said in the email. “(But) the actions of a few individuals are not reflective of the Gettysburg College community as a whole.”

The feedback from parents, alumni and students in support of the college's efforts have been overwhelmingly positive, said Jamie Yates, the school's director of communications and media relations. They understand that one group making bad decisions does not reflect on the entire student body, she said.

Gettysburg College began its internal investigation in April after police arrested Neil K. Scott, who police say led a drug ring selling to high school and college students, including those at Gettysburg, according to an affidavit from the Montgomery County District Attorney's office.

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The school's investigation process, however, was not of a criminal nature, but one the administration conducted through the student conduct code, Yates said. The police investigation into the situation is separate from the school's findings, she said.

Sub-dealers of the “Main Line Takeover Project” drug ring were also operating at other college campuses including Lafayette College and Haverford College, and at five high schools in the Philadelphia suburbs, Scott told investigators.

During a preliminary hearing in April, Scott, 25, was implicated as a leader of the ring and is in Montgomery County Prison on $1 million bail, according to court documents. Others were also arrested.

Eight pounds of marijuana, three grams of hash oil, 23 grams of cocaine, multiple weapons, $11,000 in cash and numerous other items related to the drug trafficking were seized across nine locations including Adams County, according to the affidavit.